Executive Opinions

Video: The construction of a new expressway into Turkey will change the 'shape of international trading' says H.E. Mohammed Al Derajy, Minister of Housing & Construction, Iraq in this interview with Phil Blizzard at MEED's Arabian World Construction Summit, Abu Dhabi. The ministers gives an overview of the project requirements which will include the construction of more than 2.5 million housing units, 7000km of local roads, 900km of expressways and 70 bridges. He also reveals his 'golden triangle' - their requirements when dealing with investors, contractors and developers.

With the backdrop of the Fairmont Palm Jumeirah hotel, which is set to open in Q3 2012, Phil Blizzard talks to Tala Jassim Al Bahar, CEO & Chairman, IFA Hotel and Resorts about the hotel and the associated development on Dubai's iconic man-made island. With projects stretching from the USA to Europe, the Middle East and across to Asia, as well as South Africa we have an overview of the development strategy of IFA.

Video: Gerald Lawless talks to Phil Blizzard at the Arabian Hotel Investment Conference (AHIC), on the positive start to 2012 for the group and provides an overview of their regional development plans. He also gives his views on 'Adapting to a Changing Landscape' which is the main theme of the conference.

The small Kingdom of Bahrain has two airlines which are competing with each other and as Richard Nuttal, CEO, Bahrain Air tells Phil Blizzard "that competition is no longer healthy and a solution is now needed". He explains how Bahrain Air has evolved from being a low cost carrier to a 'premium value carrier', how IATA membership is essential to their growth and provides an overview of their development plans.

Abu Dubai's gigantic Khalifa Port is set for opening in Q4 2012 and ahead of that Phil Blizzard speaks with Tony Douglas, CEO, Abu Dhabi Ports Authority. He says that the port will have a the world's largest 'ship to shore' cranes to handle containers in a fully automated system and talks of the importance of being integrated into the Etihad Rail network. Khalifa Port is the first phase of the Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD) which will be two thirds the size of Singapore. The interview features some stunning fly-by video clips of the port development.

The impact of ITC trends on enterprises and the challenges faced by CIOs on the large volumes of Big Data being generated are addressed by Jose Duarte, President - Global Services, SAP AG. Talking to Phil Blizzard he also talks about the evolution of SAP AG and their increasing visibility through sports sponsorship.

IDC produced their first report on technology trends in 1964 and since then have grown to become a global organisation with more than 1000 analysts in over 50 countries. Phil Blizzard talks to Kirk Campbell, President & CEO, IDC about their development, the evolution of the ITC industry and his views on key trends which embrace cloud computing, mobile computing, big data & analytics and social media.

Masdar Power are developers, owners and operators in sustainable energy using solar and wind sources. Frank Wouters, Director, Masdar Power talks to Phil Blizzard about their projects in Europe and the Middle East, new markets in Japan, Korea and China, along with their role in the Abu Dhabi 2030 Masterplan.

The 20th Public Relations World Congress is to be held in Dubai with the theme of 'From the Arab Street to Wall Street: Communications in an Age of Dialogue'. Phil Blizzard talks to Sunil John, CEO, Asda'a Burson-Marsteller, Dubai and chairman of the organising committee on what this platform will offer PR professionals from across the globe. He also talks about the evolution of PR in the Middle East and how PR is likely to progress.

Steady economic growth over the past two years should result in similar positive growth in 2012, says H.E. Sami Al Qamzi, Director General, Department of Economic Development, Government of Dubai. Talking to Phil Blizzard at the Dubai Economic Outlook 2012 conference he outlines the strongest sectors, whilst stating that further growth is being held back by the real estate and construction sectors.

Michel Wormser, VP & COO, Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) talks to Phil Blizzard about the role of the political risk insurance arm of World Bank Group and the funding which is available for development projects across the Middle East and North Africa. The agency has a U$1billion programme in place to help investors return to the region with projects in key sectors such as infrastructure, power and roads.

Michael Andrew, Global Chairman KPMG International, tells Edward Poultney why the group is looking at a shift in growth to the Asian economies, making these KPMG's most important future markets, and how the first half of 2012 going to be a very tough period although some optimism should emerge toward the back end of the year, especially around the US economy, the implementation of China's 13th five-year-plan and emerging markets - but long-term structural issues need to be addressed in Europe and the US.

Michael Andrew, Chairman KPMG International, talks to Edward Poultney about the current pan-regional trends affecting global brands, the importance of having local contacts and people on the ground, and why the Eurozone crisis is making investors view that market as a long-term slow growth environment while other regions pick up the gaps left by the European slowdown.

A Rolls Royce car is for many the ultimate luxury vehicle and despite the global economic downturn the demand is still very high. The Middle East is a significant market for the UK manufacturer and is riding the economic storm well says Torsten Muller-Otvos, CEO, Rolls Royce Motor Cars, in conversation with Phil Blizzard. He talks about their 30% global growth, including 70% in Dubai, along with the importance of the emerging markets and the BRIC countries against the backdrop of the new models in the Rolls Royce range.

Dubailand is back with City of Arabia flexing strong muscles and several other entities in serious negotiations with Dubai Property Group, says CEO Khalid Al Malik. He talks to Phil Blizzard about the recovery of this stalled entertainment destination, the interest in the mixed, residential and commercial, development of Bay Square in Business Bay. He outlines the strategy of the Dubai Property Group and the importance of dialogue with stakeholders involved in the numerous projects.